The Thing in the Water
by Lady Ifrit
Summary: When Haruka almost drowned when they were kids, Makoto, young as he was, ended up striking a deal with a water spirit to save Haruka. The contract has two clauses: he cannot speak about it and he has to make Haruka fall in love with him by his eighteenth birthday. Written for the Free! kinkmeme
1. Chapter 1

Written for the Free! Kink Meme.

Prompt: Magical contracts - When Haruka almost drowned when they were kids, Makoto, young as he was, ended up striking a deal with an ocean spirit/magical creature/mermaid to save Haruka. The contract has two clauses:

1. He can't talk about it. (and that's why in the anime, he states his issue about the ocean as being related to the old fisherman)

2. if Makoto can't get Haruka to fall in love with him by the time he's 17/18, he's going to claim Makoto.

* * *

Haru was drowning.

It was the only thought in Makoto's head. There was space for nothing else. Haru was drowning. Haru was drowning and he had to save him.

The water was dark and all encompassing, a different world where sight was blurred and sound was muted and the cold leeched the body's ability to move. It was hard to see anything and Haru's form was reduced to pale flashes in the tendrils of weak winter light that seeped through the waves. His own arm stretched out in front of him, reaching towards his friend's drifting body was a pallid streak of white, getting swallowed in the darkness. Makoto had always been afraid of the darkness and all the things it hid.

But Haru was drowning. And he had to save him. There was no space for any other thought. Not the cold seeping into his bones. Not the breath that was running out of his lungs and making his head spin with dizziness as he fought to reach Haru under the water.

And perhaps that dizziness was the reason he didn't notice or question the voice next to his ear, telling him he could save Haru. Not until the murky, inky blue surrounding him suddenly changed into blackness. Time stood still and Makoto's body was standing on nothingness instead – a vast nothingness that stretched away all around him, above and below. And out of the dark nothing a figure loomed forward, still obscured in shadows, wearing them like a robe. A pale, near translucent face with large eyes and slits where a nose should have been, that wavered between ethereal beauty and terrifying monstrosity, framed by hair like waving seaweed, with a white neck and arms that were lengthier than they should have been. When the long-fingered hands reached forward to stroke his face, they were cold and clammy and Makoto wanted to scream, but the breath was caught in his throat.

'I can show you how to save him. Just say yes and I'll make sure he's safe.'

The voice sounded slippery, like an eel he had caught fishing with his father a few years ago. It wasn't the sort of voice you could trust, certainly not a voice that felt safe. Makoto wanted desperately to run away, but when he turned his head he caught sight of Haru's body, floating in the abyss.

Haru! His fingers had been near, just an inch more and Haru would have been in his grasp. He could save Haru himself. This, whatever this was, must be some sort of dream or hallucination he was having because he was running out of breath. He had to stop dreaming and concentrate.

'It's not a dream, Ma-chan. I just had to stop the flow, so we could chat. You can't save him by yourself.' The creature whispered, voice lilting. 'I'll show you.'

And it did. Makoto had a vision of his fingers closing on empty space, Haru swept away by the river's current, and then another of himself dragging Haru's body to shore, but no longer breathing and dead before the ambulance arrived.

No! What was happening? Was the creature real? Could it reach inside his head? Why was it showing him these things? He couldn't let Haru drown. That couldn't be what would happen.

'I'm trying to help you, Ma-chan. I can help you save him. See?'

It showed him pulling his friend to the shore, but this time Haru was spluttering out river-water. It showed them in an ambulance and later, awake and safe in a hospital.

'We just have to make a small deal, Ma-chan, and he'll be safe. It isn't fair if I don't get anything in return for helping, is it? You just have to say yes.'

All he had to do was say yes. Say yes and Haru would be safe again.

A scroll appeared in the creature's hand, opening itself. It smiled at him with pointed teeth. Makoto had seen teeth like that once in a documentary about fish that lived really, really deep in the ocean and made their own light.

'Just a formality, really. It's always good to get things in writing. And I suppose we should go through the clauses. One, you tell no one about this.' The creatures face switched from beautiful to terrifying, with a death-like gauntness to its features and all its teeth on display. It thrust its face closer to his, to drive home the importance of this point and then retreated into a friendlier stance. Makoto nodded to show he understood, terror making his movements too quick and jerky.

'Good. And two – you make Haru fall in love with you. You have until you turn eighteen.' Makoto looked at it in confusion, his movements freezing in incomprehension. But it leaned forward to stroke his face, lovingly, and whispered in his ear, 'But if you don't, Ma-chan, then I get you. I'll take you away, into the ocean, to live with me forever. So, what do you say, Ma-chan – do you want to save Haruka?'

Makoto looked between the scroll and his best friend. If he said yes, Haru would be safe. And then there wasn't a choice at all, the 'yes' had already clawed its way out of his throat and past his lips, without much conscious thought on his part.

The creature darted forward to grab his hand, cutting his finger and pressing it to the bottom of the scroll, leaving a mark in his blood to seal the deal. It grinned it at him and disappeared, the nothingness rushing away into murky, inky blue again and Makoto saw the last of his air go up past his face in a bubble towards to surface. But that no longer mattered, because somehow Haru was in his arms and they were breaking the surface of the water and Rin was reaching towards him from the river bank, helping to pull them both ashore. He didn't even register his voice giving instructions but Aki was calling an ambulance and Rin was helping him tear Haru's clothes open at the chest, so that they could listen and pump at it, because that was what you were supposed to do when someone drowned, wasn't it?

Distantly, he heard a voice calling Haru's name, over and over and took a while to realise it was his own at a heart-stopping moment where it didn't seem like his friend was breathing and Makoto felt a spark move through the air, past him and into that still body. Then Haru was coughing, spitting up murky water and they were in an ambulance one moment, the hospital the next, surrounded by bustling doctors and nurses, seeing to Haru and talking to him. He was barely aware of his own voice answering the questions they asked him.

He didn't notice he was shaking until they were alone in the room and Haru's eyes were fluttering open and it was a conscious effort after that to make himself stop. When those blue eyes turned towards him, asking for an explanation, he was surprised at how composed he sounded and that he was able to give any information at all, but somehow his mind had kept track of everything, even in his daze.

It was hard, to keep that composure after that, to fix that smile on his face as he left the hospital with Rin and got on the bus. Rin, who had been so silent during all of it that Makoto had nearly forgotten his presence. When Rin said, "I was so scared, I had no idea what to do." Makoto hurried to reassure him.

"It's fine. It's just influenza. He didn't catch pneumonia; he'll get better right away."

"No, its not about Nanase. I meant you, at the bridge."

The response made the smile freeze on his face in confusion. When Rin told him then that he was shaking when they pulled Haru out of the river, he could only answer honestly, "I was kind of in a daze, I don't really remember." He got a strange look in reply.

But when Rin was gone, Makoto found he couldn't control his body anymore, the strength leaving him in a sudden rush. His hands started to shake first and then the rest of his body, and the only thing he could do was stay silent as the tears flowed down his face. He purposely ignored the throbbing cut on his finger.

* * *

A/N: Honestly, I haven't written anything other than essays for a while now, so my writing is kind of rusty. So, if you see anything, please don't hesitate to point it out. And constructive criticism is always appreciated. Please review!


	2. Chapter 2

Uh, sorry this chapter is kind of disjointed and a bit boring, but its a building block chapter and things will get a little more interesting in the next one.

* * *

When he'd got home that night, his mother had taken one look at his tear streaked face and red rimmed eyes and swept him straight into her arms. She'd drawn him a hot bath and put him to bed with an early supper, whispering her comfort into his hair. He'd fallen into a deep, dark sleep as soon as his head had hit the pillow, exhausted. But his dreams hadn't been peaceful, haunted by images of Haru drowning, of the thing he'd made a deal with in the water and a worrisome question that niggled the back of his mind – when the fisherman had died in the storm, had he been able to find peace in death? Or had the creature claimed him too? Did it claim all those who died in the water?

His dreams were never completely peaceful after That Day, but the worst were the nightmares he couldn't wake up from, where he was the one that was drowning and it was the thing that was dragging him under. He'd struggle, reaching up, fingers just shy of the surface but never quite making it. He could only wake when the dream itself released him, always at its mercy, and when he roused his sweat soaked sheets felt like they were stifling him in a damp, airless cocoon and he would be gasping for breath.

He had the nightmare once when Haru was sleeping over. It was the only time he managed to escape from the dream's clutches early. Haru had had to shake him until he woke, because he had been whimpering and thrashing, his movements only serving to wind the blankets tighter around himself. He'd confessed that he was afraid of the water before their relay with Rin and Nagisa, so when Haru had watched him with a steady hand on his back to help him calm down, he could only whisper, "I dreamt I was drowning."

In all honesty, Makoto was amazed that he had been able to swim the relay at all. He had thought the fear would get the best of him, but there, in the final, he had managed to draw strength from his friends, their presence keeping him safe in the water, buoying him and for those two lengths, he hadn't just swim as if he was running from the water. After, when Haru finished his leg and it became obvious that they'd won, he remembered his heart had been pounding with a feeling like he couldn't believe what he'd just done. That hadn't been a feeling he had ever got before, swimming on his own. It was a feeling they could only get with the four of them together. And having Haru by his side helped immensely.

As time passed, he had the dreams less often and he was left with a vaguer fear of the ocean. The details of the memory of That Day faded a little with age, so that what remained was the feeling of helpless terror and the image of Haru lying still on the river bank. The encounter with the nameless creature became a vaguely remembered nightmare that Makoto sometimes thought of when he saw the scar on his finger – seeing your best friend have a near-death experience was enough to scare anyone out of their minds. He must have cut it on a rock or something.

But the experience had left him with something else. As a child at the time, he hadn't given much thought to the idea of love or of how it might be connected with Haru. He had grown up seeing his parent's easy affection and couldn't remember a time in his life he had ever been without Haru. Being by Haru's side, swimming together, sharing lunches and ice pops – they'd always been together, and always would, if only because Makoto couldn't imagine anything else. A life apart from Haru, without him, felt wrong – like something was missing. And he began to wonder – did he love Haru? Was that love? Wanting to be by someone's side, always?

When Haru had stopped swimming after their first year of middle school, it had been hard to see him give up something he loved so much, and Makoto hadn't known what to do but be there for him. It was a different kind of helplessness, and one that Makoto became intimately familiar with over the years. Something had upset him – Makoto had known that much, but nothing he had done made Haru open up about it. All he could do was try to keep going, smiling for Haru and offering him whatever support he could, in the hope that whenever Haru was ready, there would be a helping hand waiting for him to reach out and take when he was ready to come out of himself.

Then, when Rin came back and challenged him, it was like a fire had been lit inside Haru. Watching his best friend emerge from his shell and having Rin back in their lives, it was something he had prayed for, everyday. But Rin hadn't been like himself, certainly not the boy they had known years ago – he'd completely ignored both Makoto and Nagisa, and while he'd focused his greeting on Haru, the interaction hadn't been the sort that would, or should, happen between friends. And being dismissed by Rin, even after years of little to no contact, was a special kind of hurt, because Rin had cared before.

It had been something to worry about in empty moments, because if there was one thing Makoto had learned after all these years, it was that Haru did things at his own pace and never did anything if he didn't want to. No one but Rin had ever managed to rush him into things, and that was mostly through sheer irritation. Rin had a unique ability to ruin Haru's placidity and rile him to the point of action in a way that nobody else could or would ever dare to, challenging him head on in a way that Haru would never even consider backing down. At the very least, Rin hadn't lost that particular talent.

Talking to Coach Sasabe that night when he went to contemplate things in front of the ruins of their old swim club had cleared a few things up for him, and he thought he understood both Rin and Haru a little better for it. That Haru had stopped swimming because his swimming had hurt Rin and Rin was comparing himself to Haru and feeling inadequate. It made him think perhaps Rin needed a hand as well and so he left him a message in an effort to reach out to him, hoping that maybe Rin would see they still cared and reach back, and that maybe he would want to swim with them in a tournament again too. Maybe there was a way to experience that feeling of safety from that relay again – the memory was old and fading and Makoto wanted to feel it again, to know if it was as good as he remembered.

And then Rei had joined them, or rather was forcefully dragged in by Nagisa, but he was a part of the group now and was striving to get better with admirable determination. Even if that determination hadn't seemed to be doing much for him for a while. Makoto had found it quite bemusing – he'd never known or heard of someone with as perplexing a problem as Rei, who couldn't seem to swim even with the right motions and the perfect form. That was just plain weird.

But then it turned that Rei could swim, but he could only swim the butterfly stroke, the most difficult and technical stroke of them all, but also perhaps the most beautiful – it fit Rei to a T. For a fleeting moment after that revelation his heart had panged, because that was Rin's stroke. But Rei was Rei, not Rin, would never be Rin and was not a replacement. He was a new friend, one Makoto was fast growing to care for and, as they were discovering, a complete dork in a way that Rin at his cheesiest probably couldn't beat. Makoto's imagination provided him with an image of Rei mimicking Haru's pose – looking off to the side in that cool way of his – and his tone of voice to say, 'I only swim...butterfly!' in the way that Haru usually said 'I only swim Free!'. He couldn't help but chuckle at that.

Then seeing Gou, Nagisa and Rei get so excited about holding a training camp and swimming in the ocean, he hadn't been able to say anything. When they'd turned their hopeful faces to him, he hadn't been able to refuse anymore than he'd ever been able to say no to Ren and Ran, and so he'd done everything he could think of to try and make it happen regardless of funding problems.

He could feel Haru watching him and tried his best to show he was fine. After all, it had been years and nothing else had happened. It was such a childish fear to have. He must have gotten over it by now. If his heart beat just a little faster when he thought of the ocean, he pushed the thought aside, buried it in the back of his mind, and tried his best to ignore it. There was nothing to be afraid of in a child's nightmare imaginings – he was a lot older now. And having Haru by his side, along with Nagisa and Rei, gave him a sense of security. Surely nothing would happen.

The first day of the camp enforced that sentiment: the sky was clear, the sea was calm, sparkling serenely, and the weather was perfectly mild – warm without being scorching outside the shade or chilly when the wind blew. He felt the tension ease out of him a little as they swam together, Rei sometimes falling behind in the water but catching up when they ran, while he himself did the opposite. And even if they didn't do as much as they had initially planned, it was tiring in a good way that let them know it was working and they were improving anyway. It was only the first day, and what made him happiest was that they were here together. He fell asleep surprisingly easy that night, considering the ocean was only a few meters away.

He wasn't sure what it was exactly that made him wake later in the night – perhaps it some lingering uneasiness from being near the water, some precognitive instinct that told him something was wrong or perhaps just the loss of warmth from another person in the tent. But when he woke, Rei wasn't there next to him and there was a storm raging outside that had crept up while they were sleeping. He assumed that perhaps Rei had got up to go to the toilets and thought about going there to meet him with the umbrella they had packed, pausing to survey the furious ocean before him. It was only as he turned that he saw a small figure thrashing amidst the raging waves and he turned back in horror.

Then he was running into the waves, barely slowing to remove his shirt before he jumped in, fighting to reach his friend. His heart was hammering with fear, his mind feeding him helpful images of Haru drowning all those years ago with crystal clarity, but no, he had to concentrate, he had to save Rei.

Rei was still flailing as he struggled to stay on the surface as he swam towards him, the waves pushing him back and forth with bruising force. Makoto had almost reached, almost, just a little further and he'd be able to reach Rei's outstretched hand, but suddenly he wasn't the only one he could see in front of him. A pale, near translucent face with large eyes and slits where a nose should have been, that wavered between ethereal beauty and terrifying monstrosity, framed by hair like waving seaweed, was bobbing just behind his friend, with too-long arms reaching, poised to grab Rei.

His breath stuttered and his body froze, forgetting for a moment that he was in water. He couldn't move, couldn't speak, couldn't think. Memories he'd buried long ago with half-forgotten nightmares were abruptly at the forefront, assaulting his mind with a recollection of the most traumatic day of his young life – he'd met this creature before when Haru had drowned, had made a deal with it to save Haru's life without question and now here it was again.

The creature grinned, all its teeth on frightening display. 'You didn't forget me, did you, Ma-chan? And who's this pretty you're trying to save this time?'

* * *

Feedback is always appreciated, so please review and tell me what you think!


	3. Chapter 3

And here's another one. This one's a slow mover and I'm not entirely sure about it, but I felt like this was the right place to cut it off.

* * *

'You didn't forget me, did you, Ma-chan? And who's this pretty you're trying to save this time?'

The creature bobbed a little closer. The raging ocean around him disappeared, the wind dying down to nothing and once again, he was surrounded by black emptiness, just him and it, alone. He had been here before.

'We really should stop meeting like this. But I have to say, you've grown up pretty well, Ma-chan. Pretty well, indeed...'

Despite that fact that Makoto was standing on and surrounded by nothing, the creature moved as if it was still in water, its oddly proportioned body flowing through the space rather like an octopus he had seen at the sea-life centre once. It swirled closer and circled him, leering, and Makoto couldn't help but shiver. This can't be real! Hadn't it been just a dream?

'So you did forget me. I'm hurt, Ma-chan – I've thought about you every day, you know? I suppose I'll have to refresh your memory on our deal, too?'

The deal? Oh, the deal. Something about...Haru? And falling in love. But he wasn't sure what he felt for Haru.

'Eh, you're killing me, Ma-chan. I'm happy you abided by Clause One, but it seems that was by accident more than anything, since you forgot. You can't tell anyone about this, remember? If you do, I get Haruka. And Clause Two - you have to make him fall in love with you. And that means he has to say the words 'I love you', by the way. It's all right here in the small print, you understand.'

A scroll with his name on it materialised in the creature's hand and opened itself, which it promptly thrust forward under his nose so he could read it, but too close, so that the words were a blur before his eyes. Makoto had to lean back to see it clearly and the creature snatched it back.

'And if he doesn't claim you, then I get you. You can live with me in the ocean, forever.' That long hand came forward to caress his face and Makoto couldn't keep his body from shying away. 'You should probably hurry, Ma-chan, there's not long left, you know. You're already seventeen, after all.'

Except Makoto wasn't sure if he was in love with Haru and didn't know if there was any possibility of Haru feeling the same way. He knew they loved each other – they were an integral part of each other's lives and had been for as long as either of them could remember – but there was a difference between that and being in love. Makoto hadn't particularly thought about being in a relationship either, hadn't been particularly concerned about it the way others their age seemed to be, because just being with his friends – having fun and doing the things they loved – gave him a contentment that made him feel like he didn't need anything more than that as long as they were together. He didn't think Haru had given much thought to dating either. Falling in love felt like something for the future, when they were older and getting jobs perhaps.

Also, making someone say something like that out of desperation, rather than having it said in a moment of sincerity at the budding of a new relationship felt...well, wrong. That, and Haru had always done things at his own pace and never did anything he didn't want to – if he said it then he meant it, but this would be forcing an issue neither of them were quite ready for. Except, with this deal hanging over his head, he didn't have that much time, did he? What could he do?

'Well, there may be one way we could call off the deal...' the thing hummed thoughtfully, a sidelong glance taking note of the hope on his face, 'If I can get the pretty up there, flailing away with those lovely arms, then you and Haruka won't have to do anything. We can cancel that arrangement, what do you say, Ma-chan? It'll be a straight up swap – Rei for you. That seems like a fairer deal, right?'

No, not Rei. Makoto wasn't such a coward that he would sell out a friend to save his own skin and he'd never forgive himself if someone took his place. No one was taking his place in this ridiculous and terrifying affair and no one else would suffer for his sake.

'Ah, I was just trying to give you an alternative, Ma-chan. Though, with the amount of water he's swallowing, who knows? I might get him anyway.' The thing's bony shoulders lifted in a nonchalant shrug and grinned, all teeth.

No! It wasn't going to get Rei. Makoto wasn't sure how, but he would have to find a way to stop him, there had to be a way. But what if the creature pulled him under? Rei wasn't that good at swimming and had proved he could sink even in the calm waters of a pool while doing perfect movements, never mind a raging ocean in the middle of a storm that had killed experienced, Olympic-level swimmers before. Makoto prayed that the float would find its way back into his hands.

The thing cocked his head. 'Well it seems like there's a couple of others thinking to rescue you, so we'll have to cut our chat short. But I'll give you some time to think about it, ok, Ma-chan?'

The creature faded away, but the darkness remained even as the emptiness gave way to the feeling of water pressing in all around him. He couldn't see anything. His breath was stuttering like he couldn't remember how to breathe and he felt water enter his mouth as a wave crashed over his head and forced him under. His body felt leaden and unable to move and the surface, where was the surface? He tried frantically to find it, to find Rei, he had to get to Rei and make sure he didn't drown, that the creature didn't pull him under, but the blackness was closing in, making it harder to think, to move.

Just before it claimed him completely he felt a pair of strong arms around him and knew he was safe.

~#~

Nagisa hadn't thought twice about following Haru into the water, even knowing it wasn't the most sensible idea to dive into a storm-wrought ocean but also that he couldn't let him go in alone. Haru's sharp eyes had picked their friends out among the furious waves and it looked like they both needed help, even Makoto. As good a swimmer as Haru was, he wouldn't be able to help both of them at once and if he went to get help, it might end up being too late for one of them.

They had to fight to gain distance, the waves battering them as they swam and a few times they lost sight of boys over the crest of the wave, but thankfully they came back into view seconds later on each occasion. When they were near, they could see that Rei was still flailing and trying to cry out through mouthfuls of seawater, but Makoto was unnaturally still in the water.

Haru reached Makoto first, crying out his name as he took him in his arms. Makoto didn't respond and seemed to be struggling just to breathe, but there was no time to worry about that at the moment. Haru had him and that meant Makoto was as good as saved, for now.  
"I'll get Rei-chan!" he called to make sure Haru knew not to worry and could focus on getting Makoto out. "Rei-chan, I'm coming!"

He reached towards their newest member, but a huge wave, bigger than the others by far, rose over them at that moment. There was no time to be gentle and he knew Rei would forgive him later – he grabbed Rei and dove under, kicking his legs as hard as he could and brought them both up on the other side of it. Taking a quick moment to look around, he saw they were closer to one of the deserted islands than the shore they had camped on, so he decided to head for that, readjusting his grip on Rei to a life-guard's hold.

"It's ok, I've got you Rei-chan. Just relax and trust me. Try and kick your legs too, we're going for that island – its closer, ok? I've got you, Rei-chan!"

Nagisa swam as hard as he could, harder than he ever had and it wasn't long after that – though it felt longer by far – that they were crawling onto the sandy beach, gasping for breath. He dragged Rei further away from the waterline with a hand on his arm and the other boy complied easily, sitting himself down on a log with his head hanging low as he coughed and wheezed till his breath was steady again.

Nagisa, being a practiced swimmer, caught his breath quicker and turned to survey the ocean as he waited. He looked up to the boom of thunder and lightning catching the tips of the waves and knew they were stuck on the island for the night. When he looked down, a flash of bright blue catching his eye in the light, he saw Rei's kickboard had managed to wash up near them and was bobbing in the shallows, bumping against the rocks. Nagisa leaned over them and fished the float out and turned to give it back to him.

"Here, Rei-chan."

Rei was slumped over in a defeated sort of posture, one hand covering his eyes. He took the float back with a murmur of thanks but kept his head low, face downcast.

"Are you ok?" Nagisa probed.

"Yes..." Rei's mouth turned down in an unhappy line. "I'm very sorry about this."

"It's ok." Nagisa tried to reassure him, gently.

"But it's my fault that everybody's – "

"That stuff can wait. Right now, we should go look for the other guys." Nagisa smiled comfortingly, but Rei still looked miserable, so he pressed on. "I'm sure that they're fine."

Rei shook his head, his expression troubled, "But...I saw Makoto-senpai coming to help me, but he didn't seem like his usual self." His brows lowered in an anxious line and he muttered, more to himself though Nagisa couldn't help hearing, "And...I thought I saw something in the water."

* * *

Ugh, this creature – the little shit's sass is giving me trouble, and I created him! Well, anyway, we're slowly moving forward...ever so slowly...8/ As always, feedback is very much appreciated! I love hearing what you think and your comments keep me motivated and committed to improving!


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